Preparing for Game 6 of the National League Championship Series at Busch Stadium, Roy Oswalt hardly showed any emotion Oct. 19 when Astros owner Drayton McLane told him he was set to start the most important game in franchise history.

As calm as ever, Oswalt offered McLane a respectful acknowledgment but little else. Undeterred, McLane finally got a rise out of Oswalt by offering the star righthander a bulldozer if he clinched the Astros' trip to the World Series.

Oswalt came through with seven strong innings of one-run ball to beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-1, earning the NLCS Most Valuable Player trophy. McLane, who initially offered his old bulldozer, paid up Monday morning with a slightly-used D6N XL from Caterpillar.